The Dark Four
by AmusingAnomaly
Summary: When the Dark Masters grow weary of ruling the Digiworld, they stumble upon the Pokeworld and issue a challenge for trainers to face their might!
1. An Interesting Idea

Chapter 1: An Interesting Idea

Once the Dark Masters had finally abolished the Digidestined, they were all quite unamused. There was absolutely nothing for them to do but sit and wait for something to happen. Machinedramon, Puppetmon, MetalSeadramon and Piedmon all took to their respective duties as rulers of their separate regions. Piedmon eventually grew tired of waiting around. He arose off of his comfy chair and pressed a large red button on his monitoring system.

"Hello, my fellow comrades!" Piedmon greeted cheerfully as each of his team members appeared on four screens. They all turned to face their leader, Puppetmon peeved at this interruption.

"You better make this good, Piedmon! Kiwimon and I were playing a game of checkers!" he sneered.

"And I was about to scope the ocean for some dinner!" MetalSeadramon added with disappointment.

Machinedramon just stared expressionless at the viewing monitor, just waiting to see what the fuss was about.

"I guess ruling the digital world is not as much fun as we thought it would be," he started.

"I'm having fun!" Puppetmon cheered. "I like playing with my friends!"

"You don't have any friends, Puppetmon," Piedmon replied exasperatedly.

"Oh ..."

Piedmon raised a hand to his forehead rubbing his eyebrows with impatience. "Now, let me explain what we're going to do.

"Obviously none of us have dared faced any opposition since we obliterated the Digidestined. I think it's time we found some worthy challengers."

"There are no more Digimon out there who want to face us!" MetalSeadramon stated with scorn.

"Exactly! No more _Digimon ..._ I suppose then we should look beyond the Digital World to see what exists out there ...

"Machinedramon! Run an analysis of any parallel universes within range!"

"Reading ..." the machine responded. " ...

"...

"Found it! It's a region on Earth ... it goes by the name of Kanto. It's a place where humans coexist with some puny creatures. These creatures battle for the humans, and if one gets too injured, it is called back into a tiny ball that the humans store around their waist in a belt."

"So this region ..." Piedmon began, "Has digimon too?"

"Pokemon."

"How many would you say?"

"Over a gazillion." The beast declared.

"Are there any that live in the water?" MetalSeadramon asked, intrigued.

"There seems to be a pokemon for every element found in nature – and more..."

"Do you think we could be friends with these other _pokemon_?" Puppetmon asked hopefully.

"Of course not!" Piedmon snapped. "We need a challenge! A true challenge! And I'd say we've found one! Now we just need a plan to get those _pokemon _to Spiral Mountain!"

* * *

><p>"What? You need my help? What could the toughest Digimon in the Digiworld possibly need my help for?"<br>"So sorry to disturb you," Piedmon addressed politely. "But you are the only one who has managed to open a portal to Earth ... and you almost succeeded in ruling it, if I might add!"

"I did succeed you contemptable clown! It was those damned kids ... and their digimon! They overpowered me."

"Yes, yes ... so sad. So you will do it?"

"Only under one condition."

"Name it."

"I get to challenge them, too."

"Deal."

* * *

><p>Lance was taking a break as champion of the Elite Four, and decided to go for a stroll around the beautiful region of Kanto. It was a gorgeous day outside: the sun shining brightly, a few clouds drifting lazily overhead in the blue sky, and the grass danced in the gentle breeze.<p>

Lance smiled as he passed by a rookie trainer battle.

"My caterpie is going to destroy you!" the trainer enthusiastically exclaimed.

The champion walked steadily along the nature trails of Veridian City. He eventually came within the downtown area. The downtown was amazingly beautiful and accessible. Anywhere you wanted (or could) go was just a few steps away.

It wasn't until a crowd of people surrounding the nearby Pokemon Center that caught the elite's attention. He eagerly, and easily parted through the crowd once people knew who was approaching. Posted to the outside of the center, a large poster hung and bore the words:

COME ONE, COME ALL!

INTRODUCING THE NEW AND IMPROVED ELITE FOUR!

This struck Lance as odd. He's been the reigning champion of the Indigo League for years now, and not once has anyone been talking about a change in the league's four professional trainers. He read on:

_Come to Spiral Mountain, a place where wonderous new creatures await you. _

_Bring your toughest team and see how they match up against ours!_

_NOTICE: A portal to Spiral Mountain will be located in the valley beside Mt. Moon on Monday at 2:00pm. Good luck!_

Lance contemplated this poster for a while. He had beaten nearly every single trainer that had ever challenged him. He knew the feeling of desiring a more worthy opponent, and could easily sympathize with whoever had posted the advertisement. But something wasn't right. Spiral Mountain? He had never heard of that place. Then again, he had never heard of the Unova region until of recent. This was probably some area that had just been introduced to the pokemon world. He then convinced himself that he would attend this tournament. When was it? Monday? _That's today_, he reasoned. _And the time? Two o'clock? It's one-thirty now!_

"So what're you sayin', Lance, ol' buddy?" a townsperson inquired.

"I'd say it's time to show these jokers who's the more powerful opponent! I'm doing it!"

He tossed a pokeball on the ground. It opened and a stream of white light exited out taking the solid form of a large, imposing dragon. It had small arms, and wings. It stood on two strong legs, and had a long tail for balance. Its face was of a friendly countenance, looking as though it was smiling.

"Let's go, Dragonite!" he spoke as he mounted his trusty steed.

The crowd cheered and chanted his name. He acknowledged their praise, pumping his fist into the air. He then took flight at full speed towards Mt. Moon.

* * *

><p>"Very good. Everything seems to be going according to plan," Piedmon commented.<p>

"You're lucky to have Myotismon and I working to get these pokemon trainers here," Machinedramon asserted. "With my knowledge base of parallel dimensions, we've been able to understand how their world works. Their world is full of impulsive fools who'll go to any lengths to test themselves against others -"

"Kinda like what we're doing, right?" Puppetmon chimed.

"Yes. But we know what we're up against. These imbeciles won't know what to do when they see how powerful we are."

"They should start arriving any minute," Myotismon reasoned, looking at the time on the monitor.

"Where'll they be coming?" MetalSeadramon asked. "I gotta be prepared when they arrive!"

"It'll be a standard Elite Four battle," explained Machinedramon. "We'll each be waiting in our own areas of the Digiworld. We face them one at a time. Should they be able to defeat us, they move onwards ... until they meet the champion ..."

"That'll be me!" Myotismon confidently interjected.

"Wait! How will we decide who gets to be the champion?" Puppetmon asked.

"Logically, Piedmon will be," explained the overgrown metal beast. "They'll enter at the bottom of the mountain, moving up if they defeat one of us. They'll move from the base, to the ocean, to the forest, to the city, then to the summit."

"Fine, so I'll face them first!" declared the vampire. "Too bad you losers won't get a chance!"

And with that he wrapped himself in his cape and disappeared from sight.

"Time to get wet!" the leviathan announced, as he soared into the air and headed to his ocean.

"I guess checkers can wait! Time to pull some strings!" the puppet sneered, gripping his hammer with pride. He then headed out to his forest.

"Destruction awaits those who wander into my territory!" Machinedramon vocalized, as he started in the direction of his city.

"They better be good," Piedmon sighed, assuming his usual position on his comfy chair, staring at the screens monitoring each of the areas.


	2. Enter Red

Chapter 2: Enter Red

Red waited patiently upon Mt. Silver for any sight of trainers. After defeating the Elite Four countless times, he decided to challenge himself and his pokemon, by venturing up to the tallest mountain in the Johto region. There, he would know that a trainer would be worthy of facing him if they braved the bleak mountain just as he had.

The days passed slowly. But for Red, he used the time to train his team of pokemon. He constantly experimented with unconventional methods, utilizing the environment to his advantage. Though an uncommon tactic, this seemed to work on most occasions. He had beaten every single trainer that had dared find him. He remembered their faces when they had found him; shocked to see Red, the mysterious renowned trainer, in person on top of the mountain. This amused him. Well, what else would they expect from the most powerful trainer in the world?

But Red was becoming tired of living on the mountain. He had not seen a new face in weeks. Had people forgotten about him? Was he reduced to a mere myth? Or were they just too frightened to challenge him? He debated these ideas in silence: ..., ... . And at that moment, for some reason he decided to try a different mountain. One that was more accessible to other trainers._ Rookie trainers_, he imagined. A smile drew accross his face. That way they'd know he existed. He would be able to instill awe into society just as he once had when he had conquered the Elite Four years ago.

He threw a pokeball upon the ground, and what emerged from the ball was a large, orange-coloured dragon. It had a white belly, a long tail with a flame ignited at the tip, and two large wings capable of flight.

"...," Red communicated, as he mounted his pokemon. The dragon roared with understanding, and took flight to their new destination.

* * *

><p>Red was astounded when he arrived on Mt. Moon. Not only were there no trainers about, a mysterious light shone from the valley adjacent to the mountain. Curious, the master trainer trekked down the mountain to the light. Ever-so-slowly, he approached it. It was a large, bright circle raised slightly above the ground. He could see an image floating in the center. It appeared to be some sort of mountain with intertwined colours rising to the top – a sort of spiral. He wanted to know more about what that place was. He looked around for signs. He then caught sight of one. It stated: <em>Spiral Mountain – the home of the new Elite Four! Step through this portal and be prepared to face the might of the toughest opponents around! <em>

Red didn't have to think twice. He calmly approached the portal and stepped through it, ready for anything.


	3. Demon Duel

Chapter 3: Demon Duel

Lance arrived at the wasteland that was the base of Spiral Mountain. He really didn't look impressed with the surroundings. The land was in ruins: the ground was an uneven, rocky terrain and large boulders protruded from the earth. Further ahead, Lance could see a strange mist appearing. He didn't know what was going on. But then he heard a creepy voice.

"Ahahahaha! Fear me, worthless creature!" Myotismon shouted.

"How can I fear you if I can't even see you?" Lance questioned.

"Exactly!"

"Show yourself!"

"Ahh, alright."

With a wave of his hand, the fog thinned and Lance could see standing before him a man. He wore a cape where the collar rose above his head, large boots with skulls on them and red bat mask covering his eyes. He resembled a vampire.

"So are you ready to battle, then?" Lance asked.

"Battling is all I ever look forward to. I am Myotismon!"

"Well, I'm Lance. And I look forward to your defeat!"

"I'll destroy you in no time!"

"That's the spirit! Now release your pokemon so we can fight!"

"As you wish: Grisly Wing!"

Lance quickly unleashed his Dragonite and ordered it to execute Hyper Beam. A bright red beam of energy shot out of the dragon's mouth. The beam fried the oncoming stream of bats right out of the air. Myotismon was greatly surprised at this, and suddenly felt a tinge of discouragement.

"Use Safeguard, Dragonite!"

"Nightmare Claw!"

A ghostly figure swiftly flew at Dragonite. The attack landed upon the dragon, but nothing happened.

"Now, Outrage!"

_Huh? _The vampire thought. _Why didn't that attack do anything?_ It was supposed to paralyze it!

The dragon charged at the vampire head-on. It began to glow a bright shade of orange. Perceiving the potential danger of this attack, Myotismon raised his hand and shifted it to the left. This motion redirected Dragonite, completely missing his target.

"Is that the best you got?" the vampire taunted.

"I'm not through with you yet!" Lance eagerly shot back. He began to debate as to what kind of pokemon he was facing. Obviously it knew telekinesis, otherwise his pokemon wouldn't have missed. It must be psychic-type. _What are they weak to again? _Lance still couldn't be sure of this pokemon's type, so he whipped out his pokedex – but nothing happened!

"Alright, Dragonite!" Lance shouted. "Use Faint Attack!"

"Crimson Lightning!"

Dragonite disappeared from view just as the red, lightning-whip lashed out.

"What the -"

Then suddenly the dragon appeared behind the vampire and emitted a blast of dark energy, sending Myotismon flying. He landed with a thud, but didn't appear seriously hurt. He laughed sinisterly, as he arose.

"That was fun! I'm glad your creature knows some dark attacks!

"Crimson Lightning!"

The whip lashed at dragonite and swept accross the dragon's face. It cried out in pain upon the impact. Burn marks riddled the dragon's body as the whip continued its relentless torment upon the creature.

Lance didn't know what else to do. He was losing the fight ... but then he got an idea.

"Time to use Fire Blast!"

The flame projectile shot out at Myotismon, who sensed the proceding attack. He extended his hand, and halted the flames. He brought his hand into a fist, and the fire attack was extinguished.

"My turn! Nightmare Wave!"

Electricity surrounded the vampire. He extended his arms at Dragonite, as the electricity was released. The wave struck Dragonite, rendering the pokemon to a confused state. The dragon wobbled slightly, but then gave up and sat down.

"Dragonite! Don't give up! I believe in you!"

It hung its head in a depressed state. It turned to its trainer with woeful eyes.

"Dragonite! Come on! Here, have a full-restore!" Lance shouted as he ran towards his pokemon and sprayed it with a mysterious concoction. The dragon arose suddenly – all its burns had healed, and it confidently stared down its opponent.

"I guess I'm not the only one who doesn't fight fair!" Myotismon retorted.

Just then, Lance knew his next move.

"Use Draco Meteor!"

Dragonite found its inner strength, and it began to glow an eerie green light. Its eyes shone a luminous yellow as it glared fiercely at his opponent.

"Crimson Lightning!" Myotismon shouted, but the whip no longer affected the dragon; it merely bounced off of it.

"Grisly Wing!" Myotismon shouted with a hint of desperation. Another stream of bats flew out at the dragon. But the energy being emitted by the dragon was too intense, and they flew lifelessly to the earth.

Then suddenly, the sky above darkened and a slew of large, flaming meteors fell heavily from above, all directed at the vampire. Myotismon tried to constantly control where the rocks landed, but there was too many of them. Eventually, as he was forcing one rock away from him, another meteor hurdled down at him. He screamed in horror as the boulder crushed his body. Nothing but silence. Moments later, black fog rippled out from under the rock. It ascended into the sky, and faded from view over the horizon.

"Yes! You did it Dragonite!" Lance shouted as he ran up to his pokemon and embraced it. The dragon nuzzled him gently in return.

"Now four more to go!"


	4. The Wrath of the SeaSerpent

Chapter 4: The Wrath of the Sea Serpent

"Alright, now where is the next battle?" Lance asked himself as he trekked along a sandy shore. It was a nice day for a battle – not a cloud in the sky. He continued along the beach, thinking what kind of opponent he would take on next. The first battle was against some arrogant vampire who turned out to be quite weak. Lance smiled remembering his sound victory. Seeing that Draco Meteor crush his opponent brought so much satisfaction to the champion, it was almost a little disturbing.

While he was re-imagining his triumph, he heard a rushing sound. He turned to the water, and he could see something slicing the surface. It looked like a metal dorsal fin speeding through the lake. Was it a submarine? Or could this be his next challenge? Lance paused to see what it could be. Just then, whatever it was broke the water's surface, spraying water everywhere. It had a long, massive body covered in shiny, gold armor. For Lance, it resembled mostly an enormous, armored Gyarados. He stared open-mouthed at the titanic creature, shocked to see something that huge. _Don't tell me this is what I'm supposed to face next_, he thought.

"I am the one you will be facing next!" the giant sea-serpent cried with utmost confidence. He sounded excited to engage Lance. "I am MetalSeadramon!

"So you managed to defeat Myotismon, eh? Well, that's no surprise! Even the Digidestined were able to overcome his power! However, I'm sure you'll find me much more challenging!"

Lance was quite distraught at the moment. How was he going to defeat something this massive? And it would obviously take a lot to subdue this creature since it appeared to be heavily armored. _A steel type, _Lance thought, _Fire is their weakness. _But he noticed that it dwelled in the water. This made it a water type. He began to brainstorm all the elements that this beast would be vulnerable to. _Fire would cancel out due to its water type, so it would have to be … electric. That's it! Electricity is this thing's weakness!_

"Have you decided, yet? I don't have all day!" MetalSeadramon chirped.

"I believe I have!" Lance returned eagerly. "Gooooooo …"

* * *

><p>Red walked along the desolate area at the base of Spiral Mountain. He continued to observe all the new sights that he had noticed. It sure wasn't pretty. There were fallen trees strewn across the rocky earth, and large cracks had broken the surface. Where was his first battle? As he continued along the path to the mountain, something had caught his attention. He paused and stared at something. Many things, in fact. Meteorites had been deposited in the ground. He approached one and felt it – it was still warm. A recent battle must have taken place. He looked around to see where his opponent may be. Obviously, it was a dragon trainer … only dragons could learn such a move. Red knew then who must have been here and what had happened. His eyes narrowed with thoughts of the only person who had given him a run for his money.<p>

"..., …...," he angrily thought. How dare he defeat one of the Elite Four before him! He was not worthy. Red was, after all, the true champion. And he couldn't remember ever seeing _him _on top of Mt. Silver! Red pressed on towards his next opponent.

* * *

><p>"Gooooooooooo …..."<p>

"Hurry up, you idiot!"

"Dragonite!" Lance cried, and out popped his other trusted dragon pokemon. It was quite a large creature – but nothing compared to MetalSeadramon. The digimon laughed when he saw what he was up against.

"Wow, Machinedramon was right!" He scoffed. "These _are_ puny creatures. It hardly seems fair for what I'm about to do to you!"

* * *

><p>Red walked steadily along the beach, hoping to see some signs of a battle. He looked out ahead. He then felt a surge of excitement. He could see something large extending from the water's surface. He took off at a run towards this creature. The closer he got, the more huge the creature seemed to become.<p>

* * *

><p>"Dragonite! Use Thunderbolt!"<p>

MetalSeadramon dove below the water's surface. He swam stealthily beneath his smaller opponent. And then, he struck. He wrapped his monstrous body around the dragon, trapping it in his coils. He began to slowly squeeze the dragon, getting tighter with each successive pulse.

"Now just for fun, River of Power!"

A powerful, blue beam of light shot out at the helpless dragon. MetalSeadramon laughed malignantly, as he unwound his coils, revealing a mangled Dragonite.

"Wha – what – did – you – do?" Lance commented in disbelief. "You destroyed my pokemon! My Dragonite that I raised from its birth! How dare you!"

"Hey, buddy, don't get all emotional. You chose to come here. You thought you would be able to handle the Dark Masters, but it just goes to show you can't.

"Soooo, you got any more creatures for me to destroy?"

"That's enough! Pokemon are not meant to be destroyed! When they are too tired from battle they are called back to us, where they can rest and build up their strength for the next battle! You did not honour that!"

"Hey, are you here to battle or to complain? 'Cause if you're just going to complain, then you're wasting my time."

Lance was silenced, and held out his pokeball. A red beam of light recalled Dragonite back into it. He held his head in sorrow. He was out of his league. These Elite Four … or Dark Masters as the beast had just stated - only wanted to destroy. They cared not for friendly competition. They only wanted to prove just how powerful they are. And then Lance felt a lump of guilt in his chest. He had done the same thing. He knowingly brought his pokemon into a dangerous situation just for a chance to prove how powerful he thought he was. And he reasoned that he was nowhere near as powerful as this asshole.

Suddenly, Lance heard some footsteps coming up beside him. He turned abruptly and noticed another trainer. He wore a red baseball cap, with blue jeans and a standard red t-shirt, and had a brown backpack upon his back. And then he remembered. This trainer was his long-time adversary. An admirable trainer by the name of Red. He thought he would never see this trainer ever again. But there was no denying that Red had found his way to Spiral Mountain.

"What's this?" MetalSeadramon asked in surprise. "Another victim?"

Red ignored the sea-serpent's insult, and stared at Lance with compassionate eyes. He could see the hurt that the behemoth had bestowed upon this once great trainer. Lance returned Red's gaze with solemn regard. He knew that Red understood.

"Red," Lance began, "It's no use. These creatures are in no ways similar to the Elite Four in our land. They're ruthless and much too powerful."

"..."

"What, are you sure? Do you actually think we can do it?

"!"

"Then let us do it together!"

"What are you two talking about? This isn't standard Elite Four rules!" MetalSeadramon angrily cried.

"You don't know the first thing about the Elite Four! But I think it's time you learned just how powerful us pokemon trainers can be!"


	5. The Wrath of the SeaSerpent  Part 2

Chapter 5: The Wrath of the Sea Serpent – Part 2

"Go Altaria!" Lance exclaimed releasing his large, bird-like dragon pokemon. It was all blue save for the white feathers that surrounded its body making it look like clouds.

" ...," Red commanded as he released his pikachu.

"Ahaha! You think this will stop me? A bird and a mouse? You have got to be joking!" MetalSeadramon laughed as surveyed his new opponents.

Pikachu was totally confident despite being up against a massive sea monster. It rolled around on the ground, sounding its name in a taunting manner. "Pikaaaaaa!""

"Enough of this!" MetalSeadramon shouted, building up his signature attack within his nose cannon.

Altaria swooped down just in time and lifted the pokemon onto its back and soared into the air. Pikachu landed upon MetalSeadramon's head and released a powerful jolt of electricity. The beast howled in pain as it was shocked. It then began to writhe, and whip its head violently trying to toss the little mouse off its head. Pikachu managed to hold on enough to deliver another shock. The serpent collapsed into the water, whereupon Altaria caught hold of Pikachu once more. The two pokemon looked eagerly at the water. Waiting. Just then the leviathan broke the surface once more and tried to snap at his two enemies.

"River of Power!"

"Agility!"

The bird-dragon pokemon became a blur and swiftly dodged the attack.

"Now! Dragon Pulse!"

MetalSeadramon easily avoided the energy ball.

"HA! Nice try!"

"..."

Pikachu hopped off its partner and began to charge its next move: "Piiikaaaaa!" – it blasted itself right at the belly of the beast.

Distracted from avoiding Altaria's Dragon Pulse, MetalSeadramon was hit by a charge of electricity just as Pikachu struck. The sea monster sparked and fell over once again into the ocean. Pikachu began to swim to shore as fast is it could go. It didn't know whether the sea monster would rise again, if had fainted or was paralyzed.

Just as Pikachu reached the shore, the beast arose from the sea once more.

"Altaria! Use Double Team!"

Immediately, the flying bird-dragon pokemon made duplicates of itself and surrounded the head of the sea serpent.

"What the hell?" MetalSeadramon asked bewildered. "I'll destroy all of you! Take this: Giga Ice Blast!"

A freezing blast of ice from the serpent's mouth was released, as he swung his head around to take down all the forms of the bird. He eventually struck the real Altaria, who immediately froze. It fell helplessly to the water.

"Not again!" Lance shouted. Just as MetalSeadramon dove towards the pokemon, Lance recalled it back into its pokeball.

"Haha – I thought you would do that!" MetalSeadramon retorted. "What's next?"

"Gooooooooo ..."

"Not this again! CHOOSE!"

But the beast had apparently forgotten about the pikachu situated on the beach. It was slowly gathering its strength for its next move. Red motioned his pokemon to the water. The pokemon acknowledged this, and smiled with confidence. It was ready.

"!...!...!" Red commanded. At once, his pikachu became enveloped in electricity, forming a large, electric sphere. It gradually expanded in size as more electricity surrounded Pikachu. Suddenly, when Pikachu was nothing more than a ball of electricity, it took off from the ground and aimed itself at the digimon.

MetalSeadramon caught sight of the ball from the corner of his eye, and quickly dove beneath the surface. Its metal crest slicing the ocean's surface as it speedily swam along the ocean; it disappeared as it gradually descended to the depths.

Pikachu followed the serpent's path closely near the water.

A powerful beam of blue light erupted from beneath the ocean. Pikachu narrowly missed it, and continued its pursuit in a zigzag pattern.

More beams of light emitted from the ocean, all missing its target. Because it was underwater, MetalSeadramon could only see a faint ripple of its target above.

Tired of constantly failing, the sea-serpent arose out of the water and soared into the air. It stared head-on at the ball of destruction. He had to be careful. One hit from this could do some serious damage.

Before long, Pikachu charged its opponent.

"Energy Blast!"

The flames spewed out of his mouth.

Pikachu easily weaved around it.

Noticing his failed attempt once again, the massive digimon ducked and dipped out of the way. But it wasn't until Pikachu side-swiped him at full speed that it was too late to make a move.

The ball struck MetalSeadramon in the face, sending 1 000 000 volts through its body. It shouted in agony as it began to spark from all over. It became paralyzed from the shock, and heavily fell towards the ocean. Pikachu, with lightning-fast speed came around again, striking it on the other side of its face, shocking it some more. Even if the digimon wasn't paralyzed it wouldn't be able to catch the annoying ball of doom flying around the area. It was moving too quickly.

MetalSeadramon hit the water with a _splash _and slowly drifted into the ocean. He could only stare helplessly at the cause of his downfall, as he sparked uncontrollably. He sunk lower and lower below the surface, where he could rest peacefully. For now, he would admit defeat. Until next time.

Red recalled his pikachu back into its pokeball. He looked to Lance. Lance returned his stare.

"Good battle there, Red," he addressed, holding out his hand. "But I have a strange feeling these battles won't be getting any easier."


	6. Incoming Assailants

Chapter 6: Incoming Assailants

Back in Kanto, the gym leaders of the region gathered in a small hut near Indigo Plateau. They were discussing a serious matter that had befallen the pokemon world. Whatever the cause, it was of utmost concern.

"I don't understand, where are all the trainers?" Brock posited to the group.

"I have no idea. I haven't been challenged to a gym battle in ages!" added Janine.

"Maybe it's 'cause you suck!" Sabrina replied cruelly.

"No, it's not that," Lt. Surge consoled. "No one has bothered to show up at my gym either!"

"I know what you mean ... no battles ... and I'm not getting any younger!" Blaine retorted.

"What do you suppose we do then, hm? Shall we all abandon our duties as gym leaders and seek out the cause of this phenomenon?" asked Blue.

"That won't be necessary," an eerie voice spoke. The leaders turned their attention to a man located a at the back of the seminar room. He was shrouded in shadow, making any features difficult to distinguish. He wore a fedora accompanied by a trenchcoat, aiding in his mysterious appearance."The cause has already been determined."

"What do you mean?" Brock asked anxiously. "Was there some sort of mass murder?"

"No ... nothing like that ... yet," the voice replied darkly.

"What is it then?" Erica asked politely yet fearfully.

"A portal ... to another world ..."

"So all the pokemon trainers in the region have decided explore this other world? What for?" asked Blue.

"Well, not all pokemon trainers; only the high calibre ones. They have decided to test their strength against some unknown opponents. An alternate Elite Four, if you will."

"You're kidding!" Lt. Surge bellowed.

"So because of this portal, trainers see this as more challenging than trekking across the region, gathering badges, and entering the Indigo League?" exclaimed Blue. "What an insult!"

"Is this true?" Misty inquired.

"Sadly, it is – every bit of it," Sabrina returned. She closed her eyes, and concentrated. "I see a large mountain ... with an ocean ... a forest, a city ... and ... desolation ... all winding around this mountain ..."

"Very good! That mountain is where all these trainers have gone to. And if you consider yourselves as highly skilled trainers then I suggest you head over there now!" the mysterious man's voice coaxed.

"Who will guard our gyms?" Brock started. "Who'll take on any new challengers?"

"Oh ... there probably won't be any challengers for a long time ... many trainers have already stepped through this portal already. And like I said before, these are some of the best that there's ever been! So I'm sure you would trust their judgement to venture over there!"

"Who are these Elite Four, anyway?" Blaine asked. "What sort of pokemon do they use?"

"You'll just have to find that out yourself, now won't you?"

"Well ... what do you guy's think ...," Brock began, "should we see what's so great about this new place? Or should we just stay here?"

"I'm all for it!" Sabrina asserted confidently. "I've foreseen my victory!"

"Count me in!" Misty declared.

Everyone else shouted in agreement.

They then all arose from the meeting table and filed out of the room and into the bright daylight. The mysterious man watched eagerly as they emptied out.

"Fools," he muttered, "You have much yet to learn."

And with that, mysterious man vanished.

* * *

><p>Lance and Red traveled together along a dirt path. They had now reached a wooded area; trees rose high above them, and vegetation scattered about.<p>

"I wonder what's next?" Lance began. "That last battle was tough. Who would've thought a mere pikachu could take down that monster?"

"..."

"Yes, I do believe you had the type advantage. It's too bad my dragonite ... f-failed ... m-me ..."

Thoughts of his beloved dragon pokemon flooded his mind. Even though he owned two more of these magnificent dragons, Lance loved each and every one of his pokemon tremendously. His face contorted in sorrow as a lone tear escaped his eye.

"I shouldn't have sent him out!" Lance wailed, tears now streaming down his face. "He was such a ...a good ... a great pokemon!"

Red clasped a hand upon Lance's shoulder and looked to his face with sympathy. He nodded in agreement.

As Lance continued to bawl, the two heard something rustle from behind some bushes. They stopped and listened. Some more rustling. It was moving closer. They began to slowly back away from the shrubs, and turned to walk bristly down the path.

The rustling began to follow them faster. They continued to run down the dirt trail. To their surprise they were running at such a pace that the trees seemed to go by in a great blur. They looked down to their feet and noticed the path was moving!

"What's going on?" cried Lance. "Where are we going?"

Red looked just as flustered as he eagerly looked left and right trying to find out what was happening, or who may be responsible.

They neared a clearing, where they spotted a quaint, little cottage standing there in the middle. As they approached it they noticed that it wasn't a small cottage, but a rather large, foreboding mansion. The shutters on the windows resembled angry eyes placed high above a door, which seemed to be a frowning mouth.

Then they heard a noise; something had fallen just ahead of them. Both trainers gasped in horror.

"Eh-heh-heh-heh-heh - time to play!"

At first Red and Lance gasped, shocked to see some odd puppet appear before them. But then the two turned to each other, and smiled. They began laughing hysterically, slapping themselves on the knees.

"Wha-what – the hell – is that thing!" Lance cried out loud, still giggling slightly.

Even Red seemed to actually make a somewhat audible comment, "Is – is – that – our next fight?" Red sputtered out, smiling wide.

"I don't see what's so funny," the puppet commented in his distinct voice.

Just then the two trainers turned to each other once more and burst out in another laughing fit.

"Its voice! Its voice – don't talk! It's too much!" Lance cried out with tears of happiness now leaking from his face.

"That's not the only thing you'll be wishing for me to stop!" the puppet angrily shouted. "When I'm done with you, you'll wish you never came to Spiral Mountain!"

* * *

><p>"What? More of you? You know what, just go ahead – I'm sick of dealing with you people!" MetalSeadramon angrily shouted as he made his way back to the ocean. The hoard of trainers, including the Kanto gym leaders, shrugged it off, curious to know why they had been denied a battle. They continued onwards.<p>

"No way, buddy!" a cocky trainer by the name of Ash called out to the sea. "I want to challenge you! Show yourself you coward!"

The sea monster must have heard this command. He swiftly broke the surface, soaking the awe-struck onlookers.

"A coward am I? Well, let me tell you this: I'm no coward. I just thought I would show some mercy just to see if any brave souls would want still be up for a battle."

The rest of the crowd slowly tried to get away from this monster, completely dumbfounded by Ash's impulsive tendency to battle anything that came his way.

The gym leaders were already ahead of the crowd, but turned to see what was about to happen.

"Well I'm totally the one who would be called brave! I've put myself in so much danger just to save some pokemon! You may be big, but you're nothing compared to the pokemon I've seen!"

"Is that so?" MetalSeadramon asked as his nose began to take in blue energy.

"I know so! ... and what's up with your nose? It's blue! Are you sick or something?" Ash laughed at his little joke.

But in the end, it was MetalSeadramon who had the last laugh. With a blast of his River of Power, Ash was destroyed, as well as many of the trainers that had been standing nearby, as the beam swept along the beach.

The gym leaders ran as fast as they could to the next section of Spiral Mountain, horrified at what they had just witnessed. They were all grateful that this monster had supposedly feigned cowardice in order to let them pass.

"Oh, Ash," Misty cried. "He was always an idiot ..."


	7. The Decision

Chapter 7: The Decision

"Are we seriously going to fight you?" Lance asked.

"That's right! I wanna have some fun!" Puppetmon responded joyfully.

Red stood to the side leaning against a tree, amused at their new situation.

"Some fun, eh? Well, if you want to battle, you must be pretty confident that you can defeat us. You don't look very threatening though."

Lance turned to Red, just as he remembered how Pikachu took down MetalSeadramon. Red nodded with a smile.

"Why don't you try me?" the puppet asked angrily, raising his hammer high over his head. "I can destroy you anytime!"

"OK ...," Lance conceded reluctantly. "But I have a feeling this is going to be interesting for the both of us."

* * *

><p>Piedmon sat smugly on his chair where he studied the many trainers that had entered into the digital world. They all seemed so weak at first. He recalled seeing the trainer with the red hair and cape ... how ridiculous he looked! Going around dressed like that ... but Piedmon was impressed at the result. This trainer took down Myotismon, while significantly inferior to himself, was still a formidable foe; the defeat of Myotismon made him feel excited inside. A feeling that had long escaped him for a while now. But his excitement grew when he saw the other trainer appear alongside the caped one – a casually dressed one with a baseball cap. Watching the two trainers battle together to take down MetalSeadramon brought huge satisfaction to him. Although he knew the rules that Machinedramon had laid out for this challenge, he didn't find this change the least bit daunting. <em>If that's what it takes, so be it! <em>He thought, _as long as I get a role in this grand performance! _And those trainers that had escaped the massacre that MetalSeadramon had bestowed ... why had they avoided such an opportunity? They were supposed to be leaders! Was it not their duty to challenge anyone that approached them? Piedmon interlaced his fingers as he pondered these newcomers and their motives. After some time, he turned his attention to the forest where a new battle was commencing.

* * *

><p>"Go, Charizard!"<p>

Puppetmon eagerly rushed up to his opponent, wielding his hammer high above him.

"Puupppett -"

As the digimon neared the dragon, it spat out a small ball of fire at him. It caught the puppet on his foot, and he immediately began to hop up and down trying to shake off the flames that had ignited. He eventually found a small puddle near the woods and dipped his burning foot into it.

"You'll pay for that!" he shouted angrily. He aimed his hammer at the dragon and shot out a countless number of energy balls from the pores in the head of his weapon. They pummelled relentlessly at Charizard; the Pokemon roaring in pain as they struck.

"Charizard, use fly!"

"I don't think so!"

Just as Charizard launched himself into the air, he began to get pulled back down. He tried to fighting the strings that had latched onto his limbs, fruitlessly attempting to soar into the air with each flap of its large wings.

"Heh-heh-heh ... this is more like it!" the puppet declared.

"Charizard! Use Hyper Beam!"

Charizard locked its gaze on its captor, and opened its mouth, preparing to launch its devastating attack. Puppetmon flicked out his finger, thus tilting Charizard's head back just as the beam was released.

"This is fun!" Puppetmon cried out. He slammed the dragon into the ground hard, and then tossed him back up ... and then drove him into the ground once more ... the Pokemon roared in pain. It looked quite beaten up.

"Charizard, return!"

"Aww, is playtime over?" he sneered.

Red appeared to be roused by this relentless torment. He knew that this challenger would not have stopped its brutality unless Charizard was recalled. All this was just a game for him – it was fun for this puppet to cause harm to others. Although he knew it felt great to dominate your opponents, there were limits. Red would never have ordered his Pokemon to attack a badly hurt one. To him, that was the most underhanded deed to do to anyone who challenged him. But to win every fight – that was a rush that Red could never replace ... could he? Was he so satisfied at beating other trainers, that he had forgotten something? Was he missing something in his life that had been replaced by his constant battling? Red began to think about this. Ever since he had met Lance here – brought together by their eagerness to fight – Red had found himself opening up. He knew Lance was a great trainer ... and had proved to be much of a friend ... giving Red praise when he deserved it and being happy for his accomplishments. _I am happy to witness the rise of a great new Champion, _Lance had said to Red years ago. Was Red ever this honourable to others? Not once had he ever spoken anything positive to other people – it was always '...'. He did not deserve to have any friends ... not after being so selfish all these years ... _but this will change_, he decided.

"You think this is fun?" Red called out to Puppetmon.

"Hey! Are you talking to me?"

"Yeah! How is this fun for you? All you're doing is hurting people! Do you actually think they'll like you for what you do to them?"

Puppetmon narrowed his eyes. "All I care about is destroying anyone who comes here! That is enough fun for me!"

"But what about _friends_?"

Puppetmon's head dropped. That word. Why did it hurt so much?

Lance turned to his friend and gave a thumbs up as if to say 'keep going!'.

"That's right... _friends_! You know ... people you can hang out with, and talk about things with ... they care about you and you care about them! They'll stick by your side no matter what!"

Puppetmon dropped his hammer by his side, holding its handle in a gentle grasp. He appeared to be deep in thought. _Can we be friends with these 'Pokemon'_? He had once wondered.

Red continued, "You know, I've been the same way ... carelessly destroying my opponents whenever they came by ... forgetting all about their feelings ... forgetting about friends. But friends ... that's what matters! That's more important than winning any battle! Because when you have friends," Red paused, and looked to Lance, "you're always a winner."

Puppetmon pulled his hat low over his face, and released his hammer, letting it fall onto the grassy earth.

"Friends," he repeated, in a low voice. "I like to make friends."

Red felt sympathetic towards this creature. He had a lot in common with him. Suddenly, he felt the need to extend an offering.

"Well ... it's obvious that you're not entirely evil ...," He spoke as he approached the digimon. "In fact, if you want, you can be our friend and come along with us!"

"You want me ... to be your friend?" Puppetmon asked looking up to his new and only potential friend ever.

"Yeah, for sure! Whataya say?"

* * *

><p><em>AN: Will Puppetmon's desire to destroy outweigh his desire for friends? Find out next time!_


	8. Mysterious Miscreants

Chapter 8: Mysterious Miscreants

"Uhh ... uhhh ..." Puppetmon thought out loud, "Uhh ... I'll have to think about it."

And with that, he ran to his mansion and slammed the door behind him.

Lance and Red exchanged stares and shrugged. With nothing more to say, they continued their journey up Spiral Mountain.

* * *

><p>"Where are we?" Misty wondered out loud. "It's like we're in some kind of forest."<p>

"Yes! And a wonderous forest it is!" Erica observed as they all took in their surroundings. "There must be lots of grass-type pokemon in here!"

"There aren't any pokemon in this place," Sabrina put in. "We're in another world entirely. A world full of dangerous and unusual creatures."

"Yeah ... right," Blue retorted. "Like any of these creatures could be stronger than our pokemon!"

"Didn't you see that giant sea-creature back there?" Misty addressed seriously. "That thing was bigger than any Gyarados I've ever seen! And it totally annihiliated all those hopeful trainers!"

"Yeah ... I guess. Probably because they were weak. Sad, hopeless individuals ..."

"Blue!" Misty growled. "Ash was there! He may have been an idiot sometimes, but he was still a great guy!" She began to tear a little bit. "He didn't deserve to be killed, and neither did those other people! No one does!

"And I don't recall you trying to stand up to that monster either!"

"Whatever," Blue replied turning away from her.

"...so what do you think we will face next?" Janine asked Brock.

"I dunno," he replied.

Sabrina smiled, and looked to the two of them. "I know! But you won't believe me."

Then suddenly the ground began to move under them. The leaders all gasped at this sudden change, while they swiftly sped along the forest floor. They continued until they came straight up to Puppetmon's creepy mansion.

* * *

><p>The two companions traveled across a rugged, dirt path that ran below some overhead electrical wires. Soft humming could be heard from these wires. They grew nervous as they trudged onward. No sign of any civilization. Nothing.<p>

"We should use our pokemon to fly; maybe we could see something," Lance suggested.

Red nodded and released his charizard. Lance unleashed his dragonite. Both mounted their creatures and took flight.

* * *

><p>"Finally! It's all mine! There's no one to stop me this time!" he thought. He dropped down to the nearest town and observed his surroundings. There were no trainers about. They had all unwittingly travelled to the other world – <em>a trip in which they would never return<em>. He laughed at this. And to be sure that there was truly no one that would oppose him, he glided to the town's gym, and read a sign:

_Sorry, due to the Leader's absence, the Pewter City gym will not be open for battles. Please call again._

No gym leaders. No trainers. This was too easy. And with that, he began to plot his plan of action.

* * *

><p>"See anything, Red?" Lance called out to his friend flying on his left.<p>

"Nothing!" he returned. He glanced around. "Hey, wait! Do you see that?"

"What is it?"

"It looks like a city! Over there!"

"Oh yeah! Let's go!"

They both turned towards the large buildings arising just over the horizon.

* * *

><p>"So, what is this place?" Misty asked.<p>

"This ... is our next battle," Sabrina answered. "The second Elite Four."

"Who's going to face them first?" asked Blue.

"I will," Sabrina retorted. "He'll be no match for my psychic-type pokemon."

She looked up to one of the mansion's windows. A small, shadowy figure could be seen pacing back and forth. And then, as if it had heard something, it stopped. It walked out towards the window and looked down at the group of trainers staring back up at him.

"HEY! More friends!" he happily called down to them.

Sabrina stepped forward. "We're here to challenge you to a battle!"

"Wha? You want to play with me?" he sneered; his evil intentions surfacing.

"Indeed! Now come down so we can fight!" she called again.

"OK, fine," he answered as he hopped out the window and landed right in front of them. "Let's have some fun!"

* * *

><p>Lance and Red landed in the city. They recalled their Pokemon and took in their new setting. Both were surrounded by familliar sites.<p>

"Isn't that the Burned Tower from Ecruteak City?" Red asked.

"Sure looks like it," Lance responded.

"And there! It looks like the Game Corner from Celadon City!"

"And the Radio Tower from Goldenrod! Red! Do you know what this means? We're home! We made it back!"

"I'm not so sure."

Then something stirred. Red turned his attention to the noise. A scraping sound reverberated from behind a building. He held his pokeball at the ready as the sound became more prominent. _Scrape, scrape. _They both remained as quiet as can be. The sound became louder. And louder. And when the culprit finally emerged from around the building, Red tossed his pokeball on the ground.

"Go, Snorlax!"

* * *

><p><em>AN: Who is this new opponent? Will Sabrina be able to defeat Puppetmon? Is everyone doomed? Find out on the next episode of _The Dark Four!


	9. The Raging Battles

Chapter 9: The Raging Battles

The giant, grey teddy bear towered over the two trainers. It had a ripped, red cape, narrowed red eyes, and a large, sharp claw attached to its left arm. Its body seemed to be stitched together with various iron staples. A gaping hole in its stomach revealed a glowing, green eye that struck fear into the two trainers. This was definitely not a friendly teddy bear.

Snorlax was at the ready. He stood tall and proud, puffing up his body to intimidate his opponent.

"Snorlax! Body Slam!" Red commanded. Before the bear could react fast enough, Snorlax jumped into the air and plopped heavily upon him. The bear roared angrily as it struggled to get up. But the huge pokemon remained where he was; he snored soundly upon the digimon.

"Errr – get off me!" he cried.

"Who do you work for?" Red cried. "Are you our next opponent?"

"Get this thing off me and I'll tell you!" the creature cried.

Snorlax was recalled back.

The bear quickly arose.

"Aha!" he cried. "Now we can start this again! I am WaruMonzaemon! I must say I didn't expect you to get this far! Machinedramon will be pleased!"

"So this ... Machinedramon ... will be the next one to be taken down!"

"Of course ... but it won't be easy getting to him! You must defeat me first!"

* * *

><p>"Go, Kadabra!"<p>

"Puppet Pummel!"

Sabrina released her pokemon as the puppet charged Kadabra.

_Kadabra – Teleport,_ she telepathically communicated to her pokemon.

The explosion erupted just as Kadabra disappeared. Puppetmon was befuddled.

_Kadabra, Psychic attack. _

Kadabra, staring at the digimon's back, locked its gaze upon him. Puppetmon became surrounded in a mysterious blue aura. He then began to do a strange dance – raising his arms high over his head, and he stepped awkwardly back and forth.

"Hey! Stop this!" he shouted. "Ahhh!"

He blasted off from the ground, and was then sent crashing down under Kadabra's control. The pokemon repeated this assault two more times, upon which Sabrina halted the attack. She wanted to let Puppetmon try to fight back. He slowly arose, using his hammer to push himself up.

"You think you're so tough ..." he weakly began, "But I am stronger than you!"

"You should just give up," Sabrina returned. "You can't overpower my psychic-pokemon's abilities."

Just then, Puppetmon aimed his hammer at Kadabra, releasing many energy balls at it. As if Kadabra had anticipated the attack, it teleported out of the way, appearing at Puppetmon's left. The energy balls aimed once again at the pokemon, and it quickly disappeared, appearing in a different location.

"Stand still!"

But Kadabra was always one step ahead of the digimon; it always teleported to safety each time Puppetmon attacked.

"This is no fun!" he angrily shouted. He removed his wooden cross from his back and tossed it at the pokemon. It spun rapidly, steadily making its way towards Kadabra. Kadabra teleported once again and appeared right in front of Puppetmon.

_Psywave._

Strange alpha waves emitted from the pokemon and struck Puppetmon, rendering him to a dazed state.

But suddenly Puppetmon's wooden cross came hurdling back and struck the pokemon in the back of the head causing Kadabra to fall over, breaking its focus upon the digimon. Puppetmon snapped out of his confusion.

"Aha!" he shouted as he grabbed his cross and reattached it to his back. "Now it's my turn!"

_Recover._

Kadabra became surrounded by a mystical white light, and soon was standing upright once again looking as good as new. But for some reason it wan't able to move. It struggled to control its limbs. Then Sabrina then knew why. She hadn't thought this would happen. But it did - and she was scared. She was now staring face-to-face with her pokemon who was now being controlled by Puppetmon's strings.

"Kadabra!" She cried.

"Now! Who wants to be destroyed first?"

* * *

><p>"OK!" Red exclaimed. "Snorlax! You got this!"<p>

His oversized pokemon was released and stood facing down the giant teddy bear.

"Bear Claw!"

WaruMonzaemon charged its opponent at full speed with its claw extended and slashed at Snorlax. Snorlax roared with anger and retaliated by running at the bear and throwing its body against it in a Tackle attack.

"Heartbreak Attack!" WaruMonzaemon shouted as broken hearts poured out from the rip in his belly. They struck Snorlax who began to lose its aggression, and eventually backed off. He flopped lazily onto his back and snored peacefully.

"Now! Nasty Step!"

The bear jumped high into the air and came down with its foot extended. He landed upon Snorlax's massive belly, and sunk into it. He then shot straight up into the air as if he had been launched off a huge trampoline.

"Curse you!" he shouted as he speedily blasted off into the sky.

Red recalled his pokemon back into the pokeball.

"Funny how that happens," he commented. The two trainers headed further into the city to seek out Machinedramon.

* * *

><p>"Sabrina," Blaine commented. "You cannot do this alone. Let me and the others help you."<p>

"No, don't bother. I did not foresee this happening. I've already failed."

"Don't be ridiculous!" Surge bellowed. "If we all do this, then we can succeed!"

"Is that fair though?" Blue asked. "We're supposed to face the Elite Four one at a time."

"Well, it's up to Sabrina."

"Blaine. Help me cut Kadabra's strings. I know what to do."

"Fine then. Go Magmar!"

His duck-billed flame pokemon erupted from the leader's pokeball. It had some sharp claws capable of slashing things.

"Go, Espeon!" Sabrina commanded.

Puppetmon controlled Kadabra with one hand while another held his weapon. He shot out more balls of energy at the two new pokemon.

_Reflect._

An invisible barrier caused the balls to bounce away from the two pokemon. Espeon advanced, while Magmar charged at Kadabra. Puppetmon jerked Kadabra back, keeping him away from the attacker. Espeon sent a colourful beam of light at Puppetmon. He held his head in pain, releasing his hammer. He cried out in agony as he slowly swayed from side to side. Magmar seized this opportunity to cut the strings from Kadabra.

Sabrina quickly recalled Kadabra back into its ball. She nodded to Blaine who then returned his Magmar. Sabrina chose to keep Espeon out.

Puppetmon eventually regained normality and picked up his hammer. His eyes narrowed evily.

"Now you're gonna pay! No more playing around!"

He focused his attention to a cat-like Pokemon staring at him. It was purple and with large ears. It stared at him coldly. Luckily, this Pokemon could read its trainer's thoughts as well as its opponent's.

Espeon hurriedly dashed towards the puppet, whenupon he decided to cock his hammer back, ready to strike. Just as Puppetmon swung, the pokemon vanished.

"Huh?" he asked dumbfoudedly. He looked left and right. "Aha! There you are!"

He shot out multiple energy balls from his hammer. But the balls merely reflected off of an invisible barrier around the pokemon. It advanced slowly ... confidently.

Puppetmon was quite worried now. What was this thing? Why couldn't he touch it?

And then he had an idea: he launched himself into the air, and smashed his hammer into the ground. A huge explosion erupted from hammer in a huge wave, seemingly engulfing Espeon.

Puppetmon laughed triumphantly when the smoke settled and saw nothing there. "That was easy!"

But his hopes vanquished when suddenly felt weak. He could feel himself being pushed and pulled. He tried to move his arms – but he couldn't control them. He was lifted high into the air, as he strugled still to break free.

"What's going on?" He quipped. He struggled and tried to fight the unseen force controlling him. He was turned around and saw staring up at him the pokemon he had tried to destroy. Its glowing blue eyes were asfixiated on him, and were alit with fury.

And then he felt his hammer gradually tug away from him. He began to slowly release his hammer. No matter how hard he tried to hold on to it, eventually it broke free. He was now staring head-on at his weapon. He began to quaver in fear.

"Noo! Don't do it! I just wanted to be friends!"

Sabrina knew what this puppet really wanted to do. Even so, she could not find the strength in her to destroy it. Instead, with a nod to her pokemon, Espeon rocketed Puppetmon across the forest to where no one would be able to find him.


	10. Rise of Machinedramon

Chapter 10: Rise of Machinedramon

"Fire ... water ... grass ... rock ...dragon ... electric ... (48%) ... ground ... ghost ... steel ... flying ... (75%) ... dark ... ice ... (88%) ... normal ... psychic ... poison ... (98%) ... download complete," the computer spoke.

"Excellent."

"You almost done, Boss?"

"Do not rush me! Go find the trainers and hold them off. It is imperative that I not be disturbed during this process!"

* * *

><p>After defeating Puppetmon, the Gym Leaders ventured through the forest, and across a hot desert. They eventually spotted a cluster of buildings appearing over the horizon and they all agreed to check it out. Perhaps they would be able to find some water there.<p>

After hours of trekking they finally made it to the city gates. It was a large city at that, and they were all curious to explore it.

"Be careful!" Sabrina warned. "You'll never know what might lurk just around the corner!"

Blue scoffed, "I'm sure _you_ would know, right?"

"Shut up. Just keep an eye out."

* * *

><p>Lance and Red marched through the city, trying to find signs of where to go. A swooshing sound was heard and a large shadow passed over the trainers. It compelled both to look up behind them. Whatever it was, it glided high into the air appearing as a silhouette against the bright sky. It looked to be a flying dragon of some sort.<p>

"Let's get out of here before that thing comes back!" Lance asserted nervously.

But even as they were running as fast as they could through the city, another shadow swooped over them, and the creature landed with a huge _thud_ just in front of them, stopping the trainers in their tracks.

The digimon that had landed looked at them through its metal helmet, and aimed its arm cannons at them.

"This is as far as you'll go!"

And then another _crash_ thundered behind them.

"I'm OK!" the other dragon roared. "Let's get them, Megadramon!"

"I'm with you, Gigadramon!"

* * *

><p>Professor Oak sat outside on his deck in Pallet Town. He was calmly reading his paper on the bright sunny day, taking casual sips of his coffee.<p>

"Hmm, I guess I need to get glasses! I can't see a thing!"

He looked up to the sky and noticed that black clouds had rolled overhead, blocking out the sun. He quickly folded up his paper, and took a huge gulp of his hot beverage. What's going on? He thought.

He then went out to the field and saw coming straight over the hills, billowing black fog.

"This isn't right," he spoke to himself. "I must alert the community!"

He ran off inside to contact each of the region's Gym Leaders. Each number he dialled always went straight to the message box. He desperately left messages about the instance of the black fog approaching. It wasn't until someone picked up the phone at the Fuchsia Gym that the professor was actually able to explain the situation to someone else.

"Hello, Fuchsia Gym, Koga speaking."

"Koga! Hello! This is Prof. Oak. I am calling because of a strange occurrence."

"Is it something to do with my daughter abandoning her duties as Gym Leader? Because I am very angry with her right now! Do you know what it's like to have your own daughter betray you? It's like -"

"Sorry, Koga, but it's not about that! Pallet Town is being covered by a black fog, and it's shrouding the town in darkness! We need to do something!"

"Have you contacted the other cities?"

"Yes! And there wasn't a response anywhere! The Leaders all seem to be on vacation or something ..."

"Hold on .."

"..."

"Yes, Professor?"

"Go on."

"There's been news of a sort of portal to another world. One of my employees at the gym told me about it. Apparently a lot of trainers discovered this place and are now trying to battle another Elite Four! I suppose my daughter has decided to challenge them! So proud of her, I am!"

"So this fog could be from that world?"

"It's likely ... You know she's such a good girl ... always trying to get better at Pokemon battles ..."

"Where is this portal?"

"I believe it's ... where? Mt. Moon, they say."

"We must close this portal as soon as we can!"

"How can we do that?"

"We need talented Pokemon trainers and even more talented Pokemon."

"Well, we can't close it now! My daughter is there! We can't leave them all trapped in that world forever!"

"Then we have to hold off whatever has escaped as long as we can."

"I'll gather everyone I know to help out. Goodbye, Professor."

"Good luck, Koga."

* * *

><p>"Dragonite! Ice Beam!"<p>

"Snorlax, Rollout!"

The dragon digimon swerved out of the way and fired a barrage of missiles. They landed upon Dragonite, but Snorlax kept on rolling.

"Dragonite! Thunder Wave!"

Megadramon cried out in pain, and became paralysed.

"No you don't!" Gigadramon shouted, and knocked Dragonite to the side just as he was charging at it with Outrage.

Snorlax came bounding quickly towards Gigadramon, and sent him flying into a nearby building. Snorlax continued to roll quicker, picking up speed.

Megadramon gradually began to regain mobility, and managed to fire more deadly missiles a Dragonite.

"Fly!"

He took off from the ground just in time to let the missiles fly under him and explode against the skyscraper.

"Dragonite! Hyper Beam!"

Again, the attacks missed as the digimon smoothly avoided the beam.

The battle raged on for some time, both sides taking shots at each other, attacks missing and landing. They all became quite tired from the battle. And then they all heard a clinking noise. _Clink-a-link, Clink-a-link_. Then there was the sound compressed air being released, which caused the combatants to look down the street.

"Uh-oh, sounds like the boss is here!" Megadramon shouted excitedly.

"Let's get out of here!" Gigadramon returned enthusiastically.

They both launched themselves into the air and flew overhead.

The sounds got louder. And when they sounded as though they were right in front of them, it stopped. The ground began to shake as if an earthquake had befallen the urban area. Lance and Red took cover under Snorlax as some debris fell from the buildings.

They noticed the road was starting to crack, and pieces of concrete fell into the hole that was getting larger. Suddenly the road shattered completely, and beneath the road, a figure was emerging. It was metal. It arose to its fullest height reaching as high as the 10th storey of some of the skyscrapers. It looked exactly like a gigantic, robotic dragon with a black, metal head and sharp, metal teeth extending from the mouth. It stood on two hind legs and had two powerful arms: one with a claw and the other, a retractable grasper. Upon its back, two huge cannons stuck out, that looked like they could destroy anything. The beast shifted its head around trying to find them. It had an intimidating dark voice.

"Come out, trainers! And face the might of Machinedramon!"


	11. Machine Supremacy

Chapter 11: Machine Supremacy

Lance and Red were scared for their lives. There's no way they could take this thing down. No way. But they had to try. It was their only chance. Still hiding behind Snorlax, and with this metal creature being so close to them, they reasoned they would have to get away in order to try their luck at defeating him. Without drawing too much attention, they all stealthily joogged into the nearby building. This pitter-patter of footsteps riled Machinedramon and stared at Snorlax who had slowly waddled into the building. The digimon laughed at this sight and decided to take his time in destroying them. It was going to happen anyway, so why not enjoy it?

Seeing how heavy Snorlax was on his feet, Red drew him back into the pokeball. Both of them ran for their lives through the building just as they heard the metallic clanking of the giant digimon's footsteps behind them, and then a _crash_ suggested that he had just broken through the wall of the building.

When the trainers had tired out, they released both of their flying-type Pokemon, mounted them, and soared out of a nearby window.

They thought they had gotten away. Safe as they soared triumphantly into the sky. But they then heard a deep, dark laugh from behind them. They glanced back and saw that the machine was flying right behind them!

It was gaining, and both trainers couldn't fly any faster. They saw a desolate area just beyond the city bounds, and decided to land there. There was easily enough room for a battle.

They made it to the flat patch of dirt, and looked up to see their opponent slowly descending upon the earth about 100m in front of them.

"This is where it ends!" he declared.

"We won't back down! Let's go Charizard!" Red announced.

Charizard roared as fiercely as it could as it stared its opponent up and down.

"Okay! Use Fly!" Red commanded.

"Ah ... a flying and fire type ..." Machinedramon commented. And with that he rapidly spun his grasper hand, and drilled it into the ground. He then brought his arm up, took aim and fired large boulders at the Pokemon. Charizard dipped and dodged in the air, and then it executed its Fly attack, gliding head-on at the machine. Machinedramon raised its arm directly in front of Charizard and launched a heavy rock at it. The attack knocked the pokemon out of the air and sent it plummeting to the ground. It landed with a hard _thud_, and lay unmoving on the dirt-ridden earth. Machinedramon merciless aimed his cannons at the pokemon, and laughed sinisterly.

Red recalled his pokemon back just in time before Machinedramon could launch another devastating attack.

"OK," Lance began. "My turn! GO, Garchomp!"

This was one of Lance's newest pokemon: It was a large, dragon-type pokemon that resembled mostly a bipedal shark with two torpedo-like extremities beside its head. Its fin-like arms had a single, sharp spike attached at the end.

"Sandstorm!"

Immediately dust began to pick up around the area, blowing fiercely around the combatants. Lance shielded his eyes as the storm reached its maximum.

"Okay! Now use Dragon Rush!"

Garchomp charged Machinedramon full-speed, becoming enveloped in a violet light; its power grew. It bashed into the digimon's left leg, and awkwardly hobbled backwards. Machinedramon lifted its leg, preparing to crush it, when suddenly the dragon speedily backed off and glided away from it.

"Dig!"

The pokemon swiftly dove into the ground. Waiting.

The overgrown, metal digimon stepped heavily towards the hole. The sandstorm obviously had no effect on it. He raised his right arm into the air and allowed it to transform. It became wider, and the grasping-like appendages pulled back. In the center of its hand, a glowing blue light built up.

"Take this! Icy Sphere!"

He shot out a couple of short blasts of blue energy down the hole, freezing it until a layer of ice covered the top.

"Garchomp! Now!"

No response.

Machinedramon appeared to be scanning the area. When he had found the right spot, he dug his claw into the ground, and scraped beneath the surface. He slowly pulled out a frozen dragon from the earth. Machinedramon brought his claw high into the air, and drove it at the pokemon, but missed as he only got the beam of light that had recalled Garchomp back.

"OK, let's try again!" Red commanded. "GO, Venusaur! SolarBeam!"

The weather was already hot enough that this plant-infused, dinosaur-like pokemon could launch a powerful beam of light at the digimon. It reflected off of the android's digizoid armour, inflicting no damage.

"A grass and poison-type ..." Machinedramon knowingly iterated. He started to transform the enormous cannons on his back. They became longer and streaks of red circulated around the grooves in the cannons. Within the cannons, an orange light began to gather, getting brighter.

"Venusaur! Use Sludge Bomb!"

The attack merely streamed down the machine's metal body. Nothing.

"Fire Blaze!"

Machinedramon shot out the hot, balls of fire at the pokemon. Venusaur ignited upon impact, roaring in extreme agony. It rampaged about, trying to put out the fires engulfing its body. Red then released his other pokemon and ordered it to use Hydro Pump.  
>Venusaur was returned.<p>

"Blastoise! Blizzard!"

Machinedramon quickly analyzed this pokemon type, opened his mouth and spewed a jet of flames at the snowy assault, melting it right out of the air.

"Blastoise, Return!"

"My turn, Red! I choose you, Gyarados!"

"Thunderball!"

Machinedramon shot out a series of electric spheres at the sea-serpent pokemon, causing it to faint immediately.

"What's going on?" Lance asked.

* * *

><p><em>Indeed, what is going on?<em> Piedmon thought. _It's like Machinedramon knows exactly how to defeat these trainers. How unfortunate that I may not be able to face these Pokemon. It was really my idea in the first place. It's not fair that that overgrown dumpster will have all the fun destroying them! When will I have my turn in the spotlight? Why should I be the champion if I don't get to fight? _

_This was just another useless idea. First the Digidestined fail to be a true challenge ... and now these Pokemon appear to be just as incompetent! Well, how should I know? I've never actually fought them! But maybe I should ... just to be certain I have a role in this comedy of errors! My time to shine is nigh!_

* * *

><p><em>AN: Will Machinedramon overpower the two trainers with his new upgrades? Will Piedmon interfere with his comrade's battle? Find out in the next chapter!_


	12. The Gathering at the Mountain

Chapter 12: The Gathering at the Mountain

Koga stood on the mountain near the portal. Alongside him stood many of his friends from the Indigo League. They observed the valley below and could see the black fog oozing out from it. What they couldn't see was what was actually causing it. There had to be some unnatural entity to cause fog like this.

"Who are you?" he called out. "Show yourself, you monster!"

"I don't think that's going to work, Koga," Karen reasoned.

But at that same instant, the fog began to direct itself towards the Elites. It halted just before them and formed the outline of a person.

"I am ... Myotismon!" the creature bellowed as it transformed into its vampire-like self.

"Your ... ode is on?" Koga asked.

"Myotismon!"

"I think he said he's got an otis, man," Will spoke.

"What's an otis?" Bruno asked.

"FOOLS!" The vampire shouted. "I have come from the Digital World to blanket yours in darkness. There is nothing you can do to stop me! All your precious Gym Leaders have gone to face the Dark Masters, and will never return! By now, they should all be dead ... mwa hahahaha!"

"Well ... I hate to disappoint you," Koga began. "But we're a lot better than the Gym Leaders."

"Hmm?"

"We are the real Elite Four! In this world, there's no one tougher than us!"

"We'll have to see about that."

"We shall."

"Mm-hmm."

"For sure!"

"Definitely!"

"IMBECILES!"

"Your otis is on, man."

* * *

><p><em>AN: I didn't take this bit too seriously. _


	13. Metal Meltdown

Chapter 13: Metal Meltdown

The Gym Leaders travelled throughout the dangerous city, engaging in battles whenever it presented themselves. Blue battled a dangerous tank-digimon, easily defeating it with his rhydon. Brock demolished some small, robot digimon using his onix, while Misty and Surge teamed up to take on some more of the tanks. The battles eventually brought them to the edge of the city. From there, they could see some commotion on a flat, dirt area. They decided that this would have to be their next challenge; the group eagerly proceeded onwards.

Lance sent out his dragonite, hoping it would be able to inflict some damage. But before he could issue a command for it to use Draco Meteor, Machinedramon sent some more blasts of freezing energy orbs, striking Dragonite down. Dragonite was recalled, and Red sent out Pikachu. However, just as the pokemon was building up electricity for its Volt Tackle attack, the giant digimon launched a huge wollop of mud at it. Pikachu was neutralized, and shook off the dirty substance on its coat. Red then ordered his pokemon to use Thunder. The attack landed Machinedramon – but nothing happened! Red could see that the digimon had planted its tail into the earth serving as a ground to discharge the electricity. The digimon then blasted Pikachu with the energy from its cannons. The pokemon flew across the arena, and landed at Red's feet. Pikachu returned to its pokeball.

Red then heard something. Footsteps. It sounded like a crowd of people were coming their way. He and Lance turned around and saw some recognizable faces from Kanto. They greeted eachother with warm smiles, except when Red had met his eyes upon Blue. He and Red had been rivals since they had started their journey from Pallet Town years ago. But Red realized there were bigger problems than a silly rivalry. He nodded at him respectfully.

"We've come to help you guys out!" Brock exclaimed.

"If we all work together, we can beat this thing!" Misty added.

"Let's do this!" Blue shouted, looking at his rival confidently.

"It's worth a shot," Lance responded. "OK, everyone listen up! We need to release all our Pokemon! Let's go!"

Blinding white light flashed before the trainers, as each of their Pokemon was set free. Machinedramon had to narrow his apertures just to be able to see.

"NOW!" Lance shouted. "Attack Machinedramon with everything you got!"

Numerous attacks were sent at the huge digimon: electricity struck, rocks landed, acid launched, leaves flew, colourful beams of light soared, fire erupted, water pulsed ... Machinedramon continued to adapt to each of the many pokemon's types, attempting to transform his cannons and arm gun to the appropriate type. But he seemed to be having some difficulty. His transformations continued to fluctuate, preventing him from ever launching attack. And to further confuse him, some of the pokemon he was facing were using moves that weren't even the pokemon's type! Too many attacks ... too many pokemon ... too many calculations. Machinedramon cried out in frustration; he began to smoke. He then seized up and remained still. With a few more sparks, the giant machine toppled over. His glowing eyes burnt out.

"We did it!" Lance shouted. "We finally did it!"

"Way to go everyone!" Brock congratulated. "We defeated the monster! Together!"

"It's not the way I would've imagined it," Blue began. "But I guess we needed to combine our efforts to take down that beast."

"See?" Misty scoffed. "These creatures are tough."

"I don't think it's over yet, though," Sabrina commented.

"She's right," Lance answered. "We've only faced four of the Elite Four. If this is anything like our home tournament, then there must be -"

Lance was cut off by a horrifying, high-pitched laugh.


	14. Champion Challenge

Chapter 14: Champion Challenge

The trainers all turned their heads, trying to find the laugh's source. And then, a figure emerged before the group. It appeared to be a clown of some sorts.

"Why, Hellooo!" It greeted the crowd while balancing on its circus ball. "I'd like to tell you all a fascinating story!

"Once upon a time, there was a group of Pokemon Trainers. They all thought they would climb up Spiral Mountain to see if their Pokemon were stronger than the Dark Masters! They battled valiantly, and proceeded to defeat each Master. But just when they thought they had won, I came along and annihilated all of you! Ahahahaha!"

"I say your story needs some improvement!" Lance conjectured.

"You're just some dumb clown!" Blue retorted.

"Am I?" The clown asked, as he opened his red eyes, and jumped to a nearby boulder. He transformed into his true form: a frightening version of a jester, with four swords pierced to a box on his back. He wore large, yellow boots, green pantaloons and a red jacket with white frills around the collar.

"I am Piedmon! The most powerful of the Dark Masters!

"Now, who is ready to make their grand exit first?"

No one responded.

"Well, since everyone is frozen with stagefright, I guess I'll choose ... you!" He pointed to Lance.

The crowd of trainers whispered words of encouragement as he nervously approached the digimon.

"Ok ..." he reassured himself. "You can do this ... this is what counts ... the Champion battle."

He released his first pokemon.

* * *

><p><em>AN: Prepare yourselves for the epic climax of the story! You won't want to miss it! (This part will take a while to write, so prepare to be patient)._


	15. Gotta Catch Them All!

_A/N: This is the final fight in the story. Due to the fact that Piedmon has swords (and he REALLY makes use of them here), this chapter will be rated M for violence and dark themes._

* * *

><p>Chapter 15: Gotta Catch Them All!<p>

Piedmon stared curiously at his first opponent. He was up against a winged dragon with a flame ignited upon the tip of its tail. With a command from Lance, the dragon shot out a huge blast of fire. Piedmon dodged it with ease.

"Trump Sword!"

He smoothly unsheathed his four swords and threw them straight at the pokemon.

Lance shouted some desperate commands, but was silenced just as the swords cut through Charizard's body and exited through the back. Blood spurted from his wounds as he fell to the ground. Dead. Lance fell to his knees ... weak from what he had just witnessed. Another one of his pokemon was dead and gone.

Piedmon laughed ruthlessly while he placed his swords back into his magic box.

"Oh, dear me ... is it dead?" he asked with amusement. He then rummaged up his sleeves and pulled out a small white cloth. He pulled on it a few times, enlarging it, and then tossed it onto Charizard's body. Electricity surged over top of the sheet, reducing the pokemon in size. The sheet lifted off as the clown walked calmly towards it. He then took a small ball from a belt upon his waist, opened it and scooped the tiny body of Charizard into it.

"What the hell are you doing?" Lance cried out, tears streaming down his face. "What the hell do you think you're doing?"

"Well, I simply must catch them all!" returned the evil phantom digimon. He returned the ball to his belt. "I believe this one will do quite nicely for the start of my collection!"

Lance held his hand over his eyes as he wept. This was too much for him.

Piedmon merely laughed. "I guess you Pokemon Trainers are even weaker than your pokemon! How sad!"

Red ran up beside his friend. "YOU MONSTER! You've gone too far this time!"

"Oh ... but I can go much farther!"

"Venusaur! GO! Vine Whip!"

"Have you not learned anything?" Piedmon scoffed, as he drew his swords out once more. Just as the vines made their way to him, he slashed many times, cutting them to bits. The pokemon roared in excruciating pain as green liquid oozed from blunt ends of its vines.

"Now, it's time for you to go!" he enthused as he threw another blanket on top of the pokemon. Piedmon had captured his second pokemon.

"Well, my collection is looking good now! Who's next?"

"I will!" Lt. Surge bellowed. "Raichu! I choose you!"

"Oh, how cute!"

"Use Thunderbolt, Raichu!"

Piedmon evaded the electric attack and sent a flaming ring at the pokemon. The ring of fire wound its way around Raichu, trapping it.

"Raichu! Get out!"

Piedmon glided over to the helpless pokemon and stared at it sadistically. He then extended his arms and sent a huge blast of elcitricity at the pokemon. Raichu gave a blood-curdling scream. When it had finally stopped struggling, Piedmon claimed his third pokemon.

"My turn!" Janine called. "Go Weezing! Smokescreen!"

The area became thick with smog. Piedmon looked about trying to find the two-headed, poison pokemon. When he became impatient, he created a huge gust of wind that cleared the area. He could see now where the pokemon was.

"Now Toxic!"

Piedmon avoided the poisonous projectile.

"Trump Sword!"

He then sent his swords flying through the air and slashed Weezing into three separate parts, where toxic sludge began to pour out from the openings. Once Weezing had fallen to the ground, helpless, Piedmon seized this rather ugly pokemon.

"NOOO!" cried Janine.

"Onix! GO! Use Rock Throw!" Brock ordered.

Piedmon swiftly dodged around the falling rocks.  
>"Onix! Slam!"<p>

Piedmon was not quick enough this time. Onix's tail smacked him, and was sent hurdling at a nearby boulder.

"I think he's getting weaker!" Blue called out. "Go! Arcanine! Fire Blast!"

Piedmon then called out "Clown Trick!" and sent this firey attack back at the large, fire-dog pokemon.

Arcanine shook it off and proceeded to use Extreme Speed.

Piedmon carefully followed this pokemon as it bounded up to him. It appeared that this creature was teleporting; it was moving so fast.

The digimon then cried out in anguish as the huge pokemon knocked him down, and landed upon him.

"Bite!"

"Bite this!" Piedmon then made his swords appear in front of the dog and drove them through its mouth and out the back of its head. Blood trickled down from the pokemon's wounds, and then it collapsed. Another pokemon was added to Piedmon's collection.

Blue looked on with disbelief and grief.

"No one hurts fire-pokemon! Go Magmar!" cried Blaine. "Confuse Ray!"

But the attack was reflected back at Magmar.

"This is no use!" Sabrina exclaimed. "We need to work together!"

"I'm in complete agreement!" Misty exclaimed. "Lance! Get up, we need you!"

While Lance struggled to regain his determination, Brock and Erica were already on the case. He commanded Onix and while Erica used Vileplume.

Onix struck Piedmon to the ground, and then was sent scraping along the earth, pushed by a beam of light. He struggled to get up.

"Vileplume, Stun Spore!"

_Kadabra! Psychic!_ Sabrina silently commanded.

Kadabra guided the pollen towards the digimon. Piedmon, appearing significantly weaker than before, did nothing to avoid this attack. He began to get dusted with the strange pollen. The digimon didn't seem to be able to move.

"I got this," Misty cried. "Go Lapras! Ice Beam!"

Piedmon became engulfed within a block of ice.

"OK! Now use Body Slam!"

Lapras bounded up to the digimon on all four of its flippers. It leapt high into the air and crashed down upon the clown. The ice broke into many shards freeing the digimon. Lapras backed off to see if it was still alive. He appeared to be moving slightly, attempting to push himself up.

"That was good," Piedmon began as he slowly stood, "But I'm not through yet!"

"Neither are we!" Misty shot back.

"That's right!" Lance spoke as he arose. "Let's go for it guys!"

"Onix! Dig!" Brock shouted.

"Vileplume! SolarBeam!"

Piedmon avoided the beam, but was struck from beneath him as Onix broke through the ground.

"Magmar! Flamethrower!" Blaine ordered.

"Electrode! Rollout!" Lt. Surge commanded.

Piedmon glided around the flames, but was sent flying when the large, electric-ball collided with him.

"Onix! Slam!"

Piedmon rolled swiftly out of the way.

"I've got one sword for each of you! Trump Sword!"

He sent all four of his swords flying through the air at each pokemon.

"Watch out guys!" Brock commanded.

The swords all stopped just before the pokemon.

_Kadabra! Concentrate!_ Sabrina urged, as her pokemon fought to hold off the swords.

Piedmon tried to use his powers to push his weapons at his enemies, but it just wasn't working.

"Hydro Pump!" Misty called.

A huge blast of water nailed Piedmon in the face, knocking him to the ground.

"Electrode! Explosion!"

"Rock Slide, Onix!"

The ball quickly rolled up to the digimon as Piedmon danced around the falling rocks.

A huge explosion hit him, sending the digimon sky-high before landing with a devastating crash.

Kadabra then launched the swords straight at Piedmon. Piedmon opened his eyes just in time to stop the swords from impaling him.

Then suddenly the blades appeared on his back in the box. He looked to be extremely weak.

"OK, let's finish this clown!" Lance commanded confidently. The trainers all released one of their unique pokemon. Each lined up beside each other and began to prepare for the final blow. They then simultaneously unleashed their energy. Kadabra used Psybeam, Rhydon used Hyper Beam, Vileplume used SolarBeam, Blastoise used Hydro Pump, Magmar used Fire Blast, Lapras used Ice Beam, Muk used Sludge Bomb, Onix used Rock Slide, Electabuzz used Zap Cannon and Dragonite used Draco Meteor. These attacks all hit the digimon, causing a huge explosion. The smoke settled and they could see lying before them an unmoving Piedmon.

"YES! We did it! We finally did it!" Lance cried wiping some tears away from his face.

"Yeah! Now let's get out of here!" Red cried.

The group of trainers gathered upon another's flying-type pokemon and soared all the way down the mountain.


	16. Home Again

Chapter 16: Home Again

The trainers reached the bottom of the mountain. They could see ahead of them the circular doorway. They rushed eagerly towards it, as if at any moment it would close. Although, as they got nearer, the portal seemed to be getting smaller. One after the other they followed through the circular pathway, and made it just as it closed behind them. They all piled on top of their fellow trainers and struggled to arise to a standing position. When they had all spaced themselves out, they looked around for any signs of the other world. No black fog. No portal. They were back at Mt. Moon. Safe.

"We made it back!" Janine cried. "Oh, I was so scared!"

"At least we're all OK," Brock consoled.

"Some battle there, eh, Lance?" Red commented. "I didn't think we were going to make it out alive."

"Yeah ... it sure was intense. I'm glad that you found your way to the other world and battled alongside me. I hope that we can remain friends in the future."

"You can count on it."

The two friends shook hands.

"So what happens now?" Lt. Surge asked the crowd. "Are we just gonna stand around like idiots? Or are we going to get back to our gyms?"

"That sounds good to me," Sabrina reasoned.

"It was a pleasure working with all of you," Erica added.

"It was quite the adventure," Blue asserted.

"May all those trainers and pokemon whose lives have been lost rest in peace," Misty added.

The group bowed in silence for a moment. After which, they all waved goodbye, and headed off to their hometowns.

* * *

><p>Professor Oak sat upon his chair outside reading the paper and drinking his coffee once more. He looked to the sky and felt a sense of relief. Not a cloud in the blue sky. The rolling green hills could be seen clearly along the horizon.<p>

|As for Koga's epic battle with the vampire ... he had heard it was a gruelling one in which the combined efforts of all the Elites were needed in order to subdue the creature. And when they had finally weakened him enough, Bruno's fighting Pokemon dragged him back to the portal from whence he came. This triggered the portal to become unstable, and it eventually closed.

Yes, things were quiet in the Region of Kanto. Everything became normal again. Trainers were about, wild Pokemon roamed and the professor continued his research on pokemon and now alternate universes.

* * *

><p>The Gym Leaders all returned to their cities and resumed their duties. They all had a greater sense of appreciation for their pokemon. And after the ordeal in the Digiworld, they all learned to be less arrogant when facing any new challengers ... especially Blue.<p>

* * *

><p>Red chose to go back home to Pallet Town to spend time with some old friends and acquaintances ... and his mom! He had learned a great deal from this experience: like valuing the presence of others, and spending time with them.<p>

* * *

><p>Lance returned as Champion of the Indigo League. He became even more humble than he had been before. He respected each new challenger that he faced, and his own pokemon. He only sent out pokemon that he knew would want to fight. He still missed Dragonite and Charizard.<p>

* * *

><p>But one thing had remained the same from all this. The Dark Masters sat alone in their respected regions once again, trying to occupy themselves with random tasks. When they had all recovered from their ailments, Piedmon arose from his comfy throne once again, and pushed his large, red button.<p>

"Hello, my fellow actors!" he greeted cheerfully. His spirit seemed to be intact.

"What is it! MetalSeadramon bellowed. "What could you possibly want now!"

"Yeah!" Puppetmon sneered. "It took me a whole month to find my way home, thanks to you!"

"I spent a lot of time preparing for them, and I still lost!" Machinedramon angrily cried.

"Well, we gave it our all!" Piedmon consoled. "I think we all played our parts spectacularly!

"But now I think we must find another universe ... we must devise another plot!"

"I just wanna play checkers ..." Puppetmon moped.

"Shut up!" Piedmon snapped."Machinedramon! Run another analysis!"

"OK fine ... (stupid clown)."

"What?"

"Reading ...

"...

"...

"Found one."

"Excellent!"

* * *

><p>Author's Note: To everyone that has been reading this story, thanks. I had not planned on continuing this, but since I received some reviews, I then thought, 'why not?' And as I began to write, ideas came to me and directed the story into something more than I had originally anticipated. In the end, I am satisfied with the direction it took. It was a lot of work, but it was also fun at the same time. So although it may not have been what people were expecting, I still hope people enjoyed it. Be sure to let me know what you thought about it!<p> 


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